Port Lands

Toronto’s Port Lands is an area of about 356 hectares (880 acres) that stretches from the Inner Harbour on the west to Leslie Street in the east, and from Lake Shore Boulevard in the north to the to the Outer Harbour in the south.

The Port Lands were created in the early 20th Century by filling in Ashbridges Bay to create additional industrial areas for the growing city. The Port Lands have been used for a variety of industrial activities over the years, including providing the city’s only industrial port, manufacturing functions and energy generation. Today, the lands continue to be used for industrial and port functions, but there are large amounts of vacant and underutilized land. The Port Lands are an unparalleled revitalization opportunity for Toronto.

Not only is the Port Lands one of the most significant urban renewal opportunities in Toronto, it is also a remarkable place today. Its concentration of heritage resources, natural areas, active port and industrial uses assist in building and maintaining the broader city. It also has numerous film studios and related uses that support Toronto’s film sector. Several planning initiatives are underway setting the stage for urban renewal of the Port Lands.

The completion of the Port Lands Planning Framework and Villiers Island Precinct Plan represents the culmination of over four years of collaborative work by the City and Waterfront Toronto, with support from the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority and numerous City divisions and agencies, all shaped by a robust consultation program. This updated framework guides and shapes urban renewal and is vital to ensuring all development advanced in the near, medium and longer-terms will have lasting value and support long-term city building objectives.

establishes new and enhanced policy direction that is the basis for the recommended Official Plan modifications to the Central Waterfront Secondary Plan for the Port Lands

While the Port Lands Planning Framework is a major accomplishment for advancing more detailed planning in the area, additional studies and work continues to be required in key areas.

One of the key areas of work is updating the zoning for employment lands, and developing urban design guidelines for the Production, Creative and Interactive Core Districts.

Zoning Review study includes two areas. The first area is south of Lake Shore Boulevard East, Leslie Street, turning basin to the Don Roadway. The second area is south of the turning basin to Unwin Avenue.

The Port Lands Planning Framework provides direction with respect to commercial, industrial and park land uses that will be encouraged within the Port Lands. Zoning Bylaw 569-2013 currently does not permit many of these uses, including the proposed park and open space network. Through a zoning review the uses are proposed to be aligned with the Port Lands Planning Framework and Official Plan modification.

In particular, the zoning review will update the zoning for Port Lands employment lands, and increase as-of-right zoning permissions for port, industrial, and production, interactive and creative uses. In addition, the zoning review will look at the parks and open system to ensure it aligns with the Port Land Planning Framework’s land use direction.

Scheduling and Phasing

The Port Lands Zoning Review Study of three phases and the study is currently in Phase 1.

Information & Reports

City staff were directed by City Council to update the zoning for approximately 200 hectares of employment lands to facilitate the transformation of the Port Lands into a number of new urban employment districts amid activities of a working port that include Media City, Turn Basin, Warehouse, East Port and South Ship Channel Districts.

The study area for the interactive and creative core urban design guidelines area is north of the turning basin, south of Commissioners Street, west of Carlaw Street and east of Don Roadway.

Media City and the Turning Basin are two districts in the Port Lands among others that focus on employment, and residential uses are not permitted. Public space uses are also planned.

Media City is envisioned as a district for film, television and digital media production alongside other creative and supportive uses. Turing Basin will transition from light manufacturing and warehousing into creative uses.

The production, interactive, creative core areas help to ensure an active public water’s edge promenade with retail and other active uses. The intention of creating urban design guidelines for these uses is to provide enhanced direction on built form, building typologies, site organization, and the design of the public realm for Media City and Turning Basin Districts in the Port Lands.

In addition, the urban design guidelines will establish performance standards that will inform the zoning review. The zoning review is about updating the employment uses to align with the Port Lands Planning Framework.

Scheduling and Phasing

The production, interactive and creative uses core urban design guidelines study consists of three phases and the study is currently in Phase 1.

• Study Plan and Work Program
• Review and Analysis of Background Information
• Public and Stakeholder Consultations

Phase 2: Spring – Fall 2019 (Draft Urban Design Guidelines)

• Development and Testing of Performance Standards and Guidelines
• Public and Stakeholder Consultations

Phase 3: Winter 2019 (Final Urban Design Guidelines and Final Report)

Meeting & Events

Stakeholder involvement and public consultation are critical components of the production, interactive and creative uses core urban design guidelines study. City Planning staff will be undertaking public consultation on the initial direction of the Urban Design Guidelines in the first quarter of 2019.

Information & Reports

The Port Lands Planning Framework and the Port Lands Official Plan Modification, adopted by City Council on December 5, 2017, provides detailed land use directions for the Regeneration Areas in the Central Waterfront Secondary Plan and endorsement of a work program to initiative more detailed planning in key areas of the Port Lands.

City staff were directed by City Council to develop production, interactive and creative core urban design guidelines for the Media City and Turning Basin Districts to provide guidance on performance standards and inform the Port Lands Zoning Review Study.

The mouth of the Don River, as well as the lands south of Lakeshore Bvld. east are included in the study ares for the Port Lands Lands Acceleration Initiative.

In 2011, the City, Waterfront Toronto and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority initiated the Port Lands Acceleration Initiative to refine the Don Mouth Naturalization and Port Lands Flood Protection Project Environmental Assessment and develop a business and implementation plan with the objective of accelerating development opportunities in the Port Lands. City Council adopted the direction developed during the Port Lands Acceleration Initiative in October 2012 and directed City and Waterfront Toronto staff to develop additional plans for the area.